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April 17, 2026 Update

Congress is back and hit the ground running although, to quote Lewis Carroll, “…here…it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place.” The Senate and House, once again, failed to muster enough votes to pass a resolution limiting President Trump’s ability to continue the war in Iran. And, with prospects still dim for ending a nearly two-month shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, Republicans discussed using the budget reconciliation process to fund immigration enforcement without the need for Democratic votes. In addition, two members of the House resigned — Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), facing possible expulsion votes based on disturbing allegations of sexual assault. If there was movement at all, it was on judicial confirmations as the Senate voted to confirm Thomas Shepherd to the District Court for the Western District of Arkansas (53-46) and Christopher Wolfe to the District Court for the Western District of Texas (53-47). They also invoked cloture on the nomination of Andrew Davis to the District Court for the Western District of Texas (49-48).

Over at the White House, via Truth Social, Trump announced several new nominations: Benjamin Flowers, former Solicitor General of Ohio, to the Sixth Circuit Court; Matthew Schwartz, Trump’s personal lawyer in the Stormy Daniels case, to the Second Circuit Court; Jeffrey Kuntz to the District Court for the Southern District of Florida; Mike Hendershot to the District Court for the Northern District of Ohio; and Arthur “Rob” Jones and John Marck to the District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Trump v. Barbara, a case in which birthright citizenship hangs in the balance. This case, which will be decided by June, impacts nothing less than the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of citizenship to anyone born in the United States. At the lower court level, judges were ruling on cases that responded to the Trump administration’s actions and policies. Here’s are some recent highlights (all from Obama-nominated judges):

  • Judge Darrin Gayles of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida dismissed Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal for publishing an article including his lewd birthday greeting to Jeffrey Epstein. Judge Gayles contended that Trump failed to prove that the newspaper published the article with malicious intent.

  • Judge Allison Burroughs of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled that the Trump administration violated the law when it ended the immigration status of nearly 900,000 people who entered the US using a Biden-era app and program called CBP One. She ordered the administration to reinstate their parole status which allows them to live and work legally in the US.

  • Judge Randolph Moss of the District Court for the District of Columbia blocked the Trump administration from ending federal funding for NPR and PBS, saying that it violated the First Amendment. His ruling will likely be appealed.

  • Also at the District Court for the District of Columbia, Judge Amit Mehta rejected Trump’s claim of presidential immunity in reference to his actions on January 6. Judge Mehta ruled that his speech to supporters and other communications that day can be considered campaign activity and thus don’t fall until official acts. This is a setback for Trump in lawsuits holding him liable for the violence that occurred that day.

  • Judge Leo Sarokin of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts threw out a Department of Justice lawsuit seeking voter registration rolls from Massachusetts. The judge said that the lawsuit did not comply with Title III of the Civil Rights Act which was the basis for DOJ’s request.

►   Senate Judiciary Committee

Once again, nominees appearing at the judiciary committee hearing on April 15 used an evasive, seemingly scripted answer when asked about who won the 2020 election and events at the Capitol on January 6. The nominees appearing were: Justin Smith for the Eighth Circuit (opposed by NCJW) and nominees to the District Court for the District of Kansas Tony Mattivi (opposed by NCJW) Jeffrey Kuhlman, and Anthony Powell (opposed by NCJW). Justin Smith was grilled on his extreme views and relationship to Trump as his former personal lawyer. His record calls into question his contention that he would be fair and independent. These nominees are likely to get voted on in committee on May 14.

 

Next week, on April 23, the committee is expected to vote on the nominations of: Evan Rikhye to the District Court for the District of the Virgin Islands (which is not a lifetime position), Kathleen ‘Katie’ Lane (opposed by NCJW) to the District Court for the District of Montana, Sheria Clarke to the District Court for the District of South Carolina, and Kara Westercamp to the Court of International Trade. The newest nominees mentioned earlier are expected to have a hearing on April 29. Take Action! Call your senators to urge them to oppose confirmation of Justin Smith, Kathleen ‘Katie’ Lane, Tony Mattivi, and Anthony Powell. You can reach them via the Capitol Switchboard, 202-224-3121.

 

►   ICYMI

(NYTimes) Appeals court ends contempt inquiry into deportation flights

(Bloomberg) Appellate judges trade barbs over Supreme Court emergency docket

(NBC) Justice Sotomayor issues unusual apology over ‘hurtful’ remarks about Kavanaugh

(Politico) Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson slams Supreme Court’s emergency docket actions

(CNN) Trump discusses how RBG’s death affected Supreme Court as he discusses Alito’s future

(Guardian) US lower courts are challenging Trump’s ‘war on the rule of law,’ experts say

(Atlantic) How did Samuel Alito become this angry?

 

With the Senate back in session, we look forward to working with all of you to send a message about the importance of fair and independent judges. Thank you in advance for your efforts!